This invention relates generally to hand tools and, more particularly to a swiveling driver having a head that both pivots and swivels for positioning a driver to engage a fastener and for selectively rotating a fastener with sockets or to turn a screw.
Fasteners such as bolts are frequently tightened and loosened using an implement which surrounds and grips an end of the fastener and rotates it in clockwise or counterclockwise directions to tighten or loosen the fastener, respectively. The implement described above is commonly a wrench or a ratchet wrench utilizing an appropriately sized socket to surround and grip the fastener. The ratchet mechanism enables repeated rotations to be made without continually turning a socket and then lifting and repositioning it. A socket wrench having a ratcheting mechanism may be repeatedly rotated both clockwise and counterclockwise but causing the fastener to actually be rotated in only one direction. A significant difficulty, however, is that a fastener may be situated at an odd angle such that getting and keep a wrench on the fastener is difficult.
Fasteners such as screws, however, usually include a head that may be rotated using a driver tool such as a screwdriver. Using a screwdriver or a driver bit enables this type of fastener to be initially installed and later adjusted very efficiently. A driver bit usually includes a tip that is complementary to the head of the fastener.
While both of these tools (a ratchet wrench and a screwdriver) are known in the art and effective for their intended purposes, it would be desirable to have a swiveling driver that may be selectively utilized to drive a fastener. Further, it would be desirable to have a swiveling driver having a head that selectively swivels and pivots relative to a handle for positioning the head in relation to a fastener. Further, it would be desirable to have a swiveling driver in which the head may be fixed in a plurality of positions and utilized selectively with a ratcheting or drive bit implement for manipulating a fastener.